Most common stains on carpet, tile, and clothing can be easily erased with everyday items that most people have in their homes.

Removing Stains on Clothing

Antiperspirants perhaps cause the most common stains on white T-shirts, dress shirts, and blouses. For washable white clothing, pour boiling water over the stain, and then treat the stain with a solution of one-third water, one-third hydrogen peroxide, and one-third baking soda. Next wash as normal, adding bleach to your wash load. As an alternative, try sponging the spot with ammonia. Very important: Never mix bleach and ammonia.

Tea and coffee are another typical source of stains on clothing. If the stain is still fresh, try blotting it with a rag or paper towel soaked in cold water. If you find that some of the stain is still left, spot clean it with a mixture of one pint of warm water and one ounce of borax. After that, wash with detergent.

What if it’s a really tough tea or coffee stain? If the fabric is durable, stretch the stained portion of the garment over a large basin. Then slowly pour boiling water over the stain from a height of around two feet. (Needless to say, if small children are present, don’t pour boiling water anywhere near them.)

Remember: these steps are for coffee and tea stains only. Never use hot or boiling water for blood stain removal. It will only set the stain and make it virtually impossible to remove.

What happens if you scorch a skirt or blouse when you iron it? Depending on the severity of the scorch, you may be able to remove the scorch stain. Here’s a method that has worked well for many people: Make a mixture of one ounce of borax for every one pint of cold water. Soak the clothing in the solution. Next launder.

Carpet Stains: What to Do About Them

Imagine that you have new carpet or newly cleaned carpet in your house. Then a friend comes over and spills something on your clean carpet. Or perhaps he or she muddies it with dirty shoes. What can you do? Well, first try to blot the stain with cold water. Fortunately, the majority of carpets today are stain resistant. As a result, you will likely find that simple cold water will be sufficient to remove the stain. That is, if you act at once.

If plain cold water doesn’t completely remove the stain, try a mixture of two cups of lukewarm water, one teaspoon of white vinegar, and one teaspoon of liquid detergent. This should be safe on any carpet, but you might want to spot test it first in an inconspicuous place.

Blood stains can be tough to get out of carpet if the blood is dry. Try sprinkling salt on the stain, and then applying a mixture of one-half water and one-half hydrogen peroxide. Spray this solution on the stained area of carpet and then scrub with Kleenex, paper towels, or a rag. Of course, you should first test this on an inconspicuous place, especially if you have a dark carpet.

Tile Stains: How to Remove

Most stains on floor tiles will come off with chlorine bleach. Use a solution of 3/4 cup of bleach per gallon of water. Wear protective gloves. Or, you can try ammonia or white vinegar.

Susanah Eastridge, the author, is the mother of three children. She has written numerous articles of interest to wives and mothers through the years. She likes to share with others any household tips that have saved her time. For free reports on getting rid of stains, just visit her website at www.easybloodremoval.com.

The EPA says that there is no proof that duct cleaning makes any difference in your home. However, according to allergy sufferers that have had the procedure done in their home, it allows them to live without allergy flare ups. Persons interested in having the procedure in their home should consider some of the following items.

The cost of professional duct cleaning can run from several hundred to a thousand dollars. You can easily check your ducts by removing some registers and looking inside to see if there is any buildup located in the ducts.

Besides checking inside the register, you can turn off the system power and oven a service panel which gives access to the heat exchanger. This part of your heating or air conditioning system needs to be inspected about twice each year. The beginning of heating and of air conditioning seasons are good times to check the coils.

Many of the professional duct cleaning companies include cleaning of the heat exchanger as a part of their overall service. Persons deciding not to have the system cleaned may decide to remove any contaminants from the heat exchanger by using a small broom to loosen the debris and a shop vacuum to collect them.

If the coils need to be cleaned, but you do not want to pay to have the entire duct system cleaned, many heating and air conditioning companies can do the cleaning as a part of the normal servicing of your system. This may be a less expensive way to get all the cleaning that is needed. It will also help your system to operate more efficiently and at a lower cost.

It is pretty common for unlicensed companies offering duct cleaning service to show up in many cities. They usually offer their services at a very low rate. Any time a supposed cleaning company shows up with only a shop vac to clean your vents, you should send them away. Professional duct cleaners will have large and powerful machinery that is designed to remove the dust, dirt and allergens from your ducts. Before allowing anyone to go ahead with cleaning service be sure that all hidden fees are explained. Tell the technician you will only pay for what you agree to and will not pay any additional fees.

Both those in favor of and against duct cleaning agree that one key to keeping ducts clean is keeping clean quality air filters installed in the system. Dust and other particles can build up very quickly so be sure to check filters at least once per month.

If you do opt to pay for cleaning, you will want to install a high quality filter after the cleaning is completed. Avoid the least expensive filters. One professional describes these as bowling ball filters, meaning the anything smaller or lighter in weight than a bowling ball could pass through them. If you do stay with disposable filters, the best ones are made of filter paper and are a z-fold in design.

Professional home comfort consultants can help with all of your home air quality concerns regarding duct cleaning Toronto. To improve the efficiency of your overall home management, please contact Toronto gas companies for additional assistance.